THE 2023 NBL1 season has seen the big names of Australian basketball produce big performances, and this past weekend ensured that trend continued.

In the North Men’s competition, the Logan Thunder delivered a strong win over the North Gold Coast Seahawks in Round 7, on the back of a massive performance from Majok Deng. It was shaping as a one-sided affair coming in, with the Thunder sitting at the top of the table with just one loss from seven games, while the Seahawks had just a trio of wins.

The two sides locked horns at Bendigo Bank Cornubia Park Sports Centre on Saturday night, with Logan controlling the match for most of the contest. The Thunder came out firing with a 29-16 opening quarter that set the tone for the rest of the game. Although the Seahawks got their offensive flow going prior to the main break, the second half belonged to Logan, who cruised home to a 26-point win.

The performance of Deng was a highlight for the Thunder, with the big man stuffing the stat sheet to produce a towering outing.

Logan Thunder (100) def. by North Gold Coast Seahawks (74)

Majok Deng – 39 points, 17 rebounds, four assists, one steal, one block

Having parted ways with the Cairns Taipans at the conclusion of the 2022/23 NBL season, Deng has been suiting up for the Thunder, and delivered the his best showing of the fixture to date.

The 30-year-old had an enormous match against North Gold Coast, proving to be the strongest performer on the court in a huge team win.

He had a game-high 39 points on accurate shooting from the field. Deng showcased how crafty he can be scoring the ball in close, and was a handful for the opposition bigs, making 16 of his 21 shots from the field, including 15 of 17 from two-point territory.

Deng was also a machine on the boards, controlling the skies and crashing the glass to be the game’s premier rebounder with 17 for the match. With a strong balance of offensive and defensive boards, Deng was the most prominent presence on the glass, outreaching and out-positioning the Seahawks’ frontcourt players.

Deng had an outstanding showing for the Thunder on Saturday night, putting all of his strengths on display and tearing apart the opposition. He was the biggest factor in the result of the match, and continued to play a key role for Logan in the victory, leading them to a 7-1 record.